Great preachers are great story tellers.

Jesus is the perfect example (literally).

Sermon illustrations are important. They wrap heavenly ideas and in earthly examples.

For this reason, I always collect good illustrations when I find them. Get some from my personal collection here.

In fact, a good illustration is often the most memorable part of a message. Within a week of your message, people won’t remember your outline; but they will remember your stories.

There are a lot of places out there to find illustrations, but recently I realized that pastors often miss the greatest sermon illustration resources—the Bible.

How often do we look for a good illustration when the Bible is sitting right in front of us?

Think about it. God has given us thousands of amazing stories in the lives of Bible characters.

Please don’t misunderstand, I do not believe that the Bible should be our only source for illustrations, but I do think it is one of the most forgotten.

Using a Bible story as an illustration is different from preaching a Bible story. The focus is less on expounding the text and more on telling a summary of the story that shows how the big idea of your sermon applies.

For example, if you are preaching about jealousy, you could use the story of Cain murdering Abel.

If you are preaching about romantic love, you could use the story of Jacob tirelessly working seven years to marry Rachel.

If you are preaching about doubt, you could tell the story of Thomas doubting Christ’s resurrection.

The Bible is a phenomenal resource that many pastors neglect when it comes to illustrations.

What might the benefits be of preaching this way?

Benefits Of Bible Stories As Illustrations

1. Increases Biblical Literacy

Today, we cannot assume that people know all the Bible stories like previous generations. Summarizing Bible stories will help your audience learn about characters in the Bible that they may have never heard.

2. Teaches The Larger Story Of The Bible

When we use Bible stories to illustrate biblical principles, we have the opportunity to teach the grand narrative of Scripture. We can zoom out from the text and see how the entire Bible works together to give us a better perspective of God and his redemptive plan throughout history.

3. Proves The Relevance Of Scripture

When we use Bible stories as illustrations, we show that the Bible is relevant. These are not just interesting stories or historical documents. Every story in the Bible has real life application that we can benefit from today.

4. Provokes Curiosity To Read God’s Word

When people hear a story in the Bible summarized, they often become curious about the story. I have seen many times where someone will hear part of a Bible story mentioned, and it puts a desire in them to read the whole thing.

For example, when I was around 12 years old, I heard a pastor mention Job in a sermon. In passing, the pastor said, “It’s an amazing story! You should read it sometime.” At that point, I had never heard the story of Job. I was intrigued. So after the sermon, I took his advice. I sat on my bed and read the entire book of Job in one sitting.

Have We Neglected The Bible In Our Sermon Illustrations?

You will be hard pressed to find a Biblical principle that does not relate to at least one biblical character.

But in our quest for relevance, we often neglect the timeless examples of Scripture. We need both modern examples and Bible stories in our preaching today.

So the next time you are struggling to find a good sermon illustration, get off Google and open your Bible.

What do you think?